U.S. Men's Basketball Practice Before Beijing

SportsU.S. Men's Basketball Practice Before BeijingU.S. Men's Basketball Practice Before BeijingThe Associated PressThe United States took a small first step on the long march to Beijing. The Americans tried on their new uniforms, then went through a two-hour practice at Cox Pavilion on the UNLV campus, as the AP's John Mone reports from Las Vegas. (June 29)VO: US Olympic team practicing SUPER: Las Vegas12 AMERICAN MEN AREN'T TAKING THE SUMMER OFF AFTER A GRUELING NBA SEASON......- SOT SUPER: Kobe Bryant//Team USA" you know it would really suck a championship and gold medal in the same year. no away around it. no we are going to get this done." VO TRACKTO ACHIEVE A LOFTY GOAL... SOT SUPER: Lebron James//"i think it's just important for us to represent our country. it's a tough commitment to make. you give up at least three summers, that could be rest time." BRING HOME GOLD MEDAL NUMBER 13 FOR TEAM U-S-A BASKETBALL, WHEN THE 12 MEN SQUAD HEADS TO THE OLYMPICS IN BEIJING LATER THIS SUMMER. STAND UP SUPER: John Mone//The Associated Press" after a less than stellar performance in...team members are fining tuning their skills for the global game." SOT SUPER: Lebron James//" what happened in 2004 wasn't the best for me, Dwayne and Carmelo. It was a bad situation,. we didn't play as a much as we should have. we're hoping to make an impact on team USA. " LEBRON JAMES, CARMELO ANTHONY, DWAYNE WADE AND CARLOS BOOZER ARE ALL SHOOTING FOR GOLD...BECAUSE IN 2004 THEY WALKED AWAY WITH BRONZE. THE CHALLENGE FOR TEAM U-S-A ...GET USED TO PLAYING THE FASTER PACED WORLD GAME,..AS OPPOSED TO NBA BASKETBALL..WHICH SHOWCASES INDIVIDUAL TALENT. SOT SUPER: Dwayne Wade//"the international game, is more team play. you have to play as a team. on defense you gotta pick it up. it's actually more physical." SOT SUPER: Mike Krzyzewski//Team USA Coach" if they just use what they see in the nba it won't be enough. the international players in the nba all take it to a different level. " COACH MIKE KRZYZEWSKI ISN'T THE ONLY ONE EMPHASIZING A CHANGE OF THE GAME SOT SUPER: Carlos Boozer//" his communication, his terminology. i am used to it. and the guys who have been doing this for 2-3 years. they're used to it too. that's gonna help us as a team." CARLOS BOOZER, PLAYED UNDER COACH K AT DUKE UNIVERSITY. HE SAYS THE VETERANS OF TEAM USA HAVE FORMED A BETTER BOND... SOT SUPER: Lebron James"we know each other better personally. that means alot." AND WILL BRING THAT CAMARADERIE TO THE NEWBIES...EVEN IF THEY'RE SUPERSTARS... NATS FULL...OF KOBE SHOOOTINGGAME ONE FOR TEAM USA IN BEIJING '08...CHINA.... SOTSUPER: Kobe Bryant//Guard"china being the host...they'll have alot of energy. a tough match which i am looking forward to." VOTRACKTHEIR FIRST PRACTICE MARKS THE FIRST STEP IN A LONG MARCH TOWARD CHINA AND MAYBE GOLD THIS SUMMER. JOHN MONE THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, LAS VEGAS. ___ ___, The Associated Press.